Nurturing Young Minds: A Parent’s Guide to Promoting Mental Health

 

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by: Erin Peace, LCSW, RPT
School Counselor

Over the last few years, educators and parents have identified a need for increased mental health support for children. These needs became especially clear after the transitions and stressors related to the start of the pandemic, and in April U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy stated that “kids’ and adolescents’ declining mental health is the crisis of our time.” A JAMA meta-analysis of over 80,000 youths globally done in 2021 showed about 1 in 4 adolescents demonstrated clinically significant signs of depression, and about 1 in 5 adolescents demonstrated clinically significant signs of anxiety. 

Parents and educators can partner to provide students with the tools needed to identify and address stress, and these shifts can start with us as the adults modeling healthy coping skills to students. Here are some tips for parents on how to have meaningful conversations about mental health with your children.

• Create a Safe and Open Environment: Begin by fostering an atmosphere where your child feels comfortable discussing their thoughts and feelings. Let them know that their emotions are valid and that you're there to listen without judgment. Encourage them to express themselves in their own time and way.

• Lead by Example: Children learn from observing their parents. Demonstrate healthy coping mechanisms and stress management strategies in your daily life. When they see you prioritize your mental well-being, they're more likely to do the same.

• Normalize Emotions: Teach your child that it's okay to experience a wide range of emotions, and that these feelings are a natural part of life. Use everyday situations as opportunities to discuss emotions and how to deal with them effectively.

• Active Listening: When your child wants to talk, be an active listener. This means giving them your full attention, maintaining eye contact, and asking open-ended questions to encourage them to share more. Avoid interrupting or immediately offering solutions; sometimes, they just need someone to listen.

• Empower Problem-Solving Skills: Instead of solving their problems for them, guide your child in finding solutions. This helps them develop critical thinking skills and boosts their self-confidence in handling challenging situations.

• Teach Stress-Reduction Techniques: Introduce relaxation techniques like deep breathing, mindfulness, or even physical activities such as yoga. These tools can help your child manage stress and anxiety effectively.

• Stay Informed Together: Keep yourselves informed about mental health together. Read age-appropriate books or articles, watch educational videos, or attend workshops that focus on mental health topics. This shared learning experience can spark valuable discussions.

• Seek Professional Help When Needed: Sometimes, children may need professional guidance to navigate their mental health challenges. Be open to the idea of seeking help from a therapist or counselor when necessary. Explain that it's a positive step towards getting the support they need.

• Celebrate Small Wins: Acknowledge and celebrate your child's achievements, no matter how small they may seem. This boosts their self-esteem and encourages them to keep working towards positive mental health.

• Consistency is Key: Make these conversations a regular part of your family life. Don't wait for a crisis to discuss mental health. Consistency will help break down the stigma and create an ongoing dialogue.

Promoting mental health is an ongoing journey, and it's okay to seek guidance from professionals if you're unsure how to approach certain situations. By fostering a safe and open environment to talk about mental health, you can create a lasting impact on your child's mental well-being, ensuring they grow up with tools to be resilient and emotionally intelligent individuals.

Shakespeare Fest 2023

 On Friday, March 31st ACE Academy enjoyed a day of sun, fun, and Shakespeare!

We began the day with fun activities in our Lower and Upper School classes. Then we went outside to have a festival that included crafts, feats of strength, music, costumes, and more! 

Face Painting by Kiwi's Party -- Kiwisparty.com

After lunch we enjoyed performances and Q&A sessions from The Baron's Men who performed scenes from A Winter's Tale and a group from UT Austin who performed scenes from A Midsummer Night's Dream. Our students also performed the songs they learned with Robin Grace in the morning.

UT students performing

Robotics in Fourth Grade STEM

Last week our fourth grade students dove into an introduction of A.I. and how we use it in daily life. This week we began constructing our first robotic driving base and learning the proper code functions. As we progress our learners will begin to program their robots with a fundamental A.I. with the ability to run an obstacle course. What a fun and hard working group of learners!

Happy (early) Pi Day!

Students in our 8th grade Geometry class have just finished a unit on circles - so what better way to celebrate (early) Pi Day than by measuring and eating real pie?

Ensuring that each student received an equal share required the use of a few measurement tools and a keen eye for detail. They used a compass and protractor - measurement tools of choice of the ancients - to construct the center of each pie. Then they split it into equal size sectors, also known as perfect slices of pie!

Here is a problem the group completed (from Open Up Resources). Can you solve it?

Wendell really likes pie and has offered to pay twice the price for a slice of pie that is guaranteed to contain at least 15 square inches of pie. 

-- What is the degree measure of the smallest sector of an 8 inch round pie that will satisfy Wendall's cravings?

National History Day

National History Day (NHD) is a year-long program focused on historical research, interpretation and creative expression for 6th- to 12th-grade students. By participating in NHD, students endeavor to become writers, filmmakers, web designers, playwrights, and artists as they seek to create unique contemporary expressions of history. In the ACE Academy Middle School history classes, we introduce NHD to the students with the goal of fostering a more complex appreciation of history and developing the requisite executive functioning skills conducive to the successful completion of long-term objectives, products, and projects.

On March 8, 2023, our 6th and 7th grade students shared the results of their historical research and product development. The students presented the museum exhibits, websites, documentaries, and papers that they had created from their research into the annual theme: Frontiers in History. Their topics ranged from civil rights to scientific advances to alternative music, and their presentations were conducted before an audience of parents, teachers, and fellow students.

Global Fest 2023

The ACE Community had a wonderful time celebrating our cultural heritages at Global Fest on Saturday. We enjoyed delicious food, engaging musical and dance performances, and spending time together. Thank you to all of our staff and parents who made this event a huge success! A extra special thank you to our No Place for Hate student committee who put in a lot of time and effort helping support the planning, set up, and clean up for the event. 

Students from Austin Chinese American Network

Giftedness and Perfectionism

 By Erin Peace, LCSW, RPT: ACE Academy School Counselor

What is perfectionism?
The American Psychology Association defines perfectionism as “the tendency to demand of others or of oneself an extremely high or even flawless level of performance.” Due to gifted students’ internal and external pressures related to their high abilities, perfectionism shows up among many of our students. It can be helpful to delineate when perfectionism can be a helpful, driving motivation, or serve as a debilitating barrier that prevents students from attempting difficult tasks. 

Perfectionism vs. Healthy Striving

While perfectionism can lead to avoidance or low self-esteem, healthy striving for excellence encourages students to set high yet realistic goals. By pushing yourself out of your comfort zone, you can feel proud when you try new things or make mistakes in order to learn. 

Maladaptive perfectionism, on the other hand, both stems from low self-esteem and contributes to the cycle of low self-esteem. When a student sets a standard for flawless performance and is unable to meet those standards, they often experience either avoidance of the material or obsession related to external validation instead of intrinsic motivation. This video, which is developed for younger students, helps define perfectionism and give concrete examples. 

Healthy Striving

Perfectionism

Assessing for Perfectionism

Individuals can encounter perfectionism in certain domains and not others: for example, one person may experience unrealistically high standards in math or history, while others may only face this while playing sports or developing friendships. In order to help a student address these beliefs and actions, you can help them identify their triggers to then set goals.

For Lower School Students: This worksheet from School Counseling Success can help students identify their perfectionistic tendencies, while also exploring alternatives for healthy striving. 

For Upper School Students: This informal assessment breaks down perfectionism into different categories. 

Resources for Parents

Both Hoagies’ Gifted Education and the Davidson Institute provide parent resources for supporting your students’ growth mindset skills. In a future blog post, I will identify specific strategies you can use to address maladaptive perfectionistic tendencies and support your students’ self-esteem.